The word cremation comes from the Latin word cremo which means "to burn" - particularly the burning of the dead.
Cremation generally involves the application of high temperature, typically between 1400 and 2100 Degrees Fahrenheit (760 to 1150 Deg. C), to a wooden box or casket that contains a dead body. The body and container are almost completely consumed; the cremated remains consist of bone fragments and particles, which usually weigh from 4 to 8 pounds (1.8 to 3.6 kg). They are then finely ground into granule form. The entire process takes 3 to 5 hours. Although the attendants attempt to remove all of the remains, a small portion will be left inside the cremation chamber, and subsequently mingled with the next body to be cremated.
During 1999-JUL, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency conducted 10 test cremations to determine the optimum temperature for cremation, in order to minimise smoke, dust and gas emissions. They expected to release formal guidelines in the year 2000.
Most bodies that are not cremated are buried in a casket where they gradually decompose over time.
Most archaeologists believe that cremation was invented during the Stone Age, about 3000 BC. It was most likely first used in Europe or the Near East. It became the most common method of disposing of bodies by 800 BC in Greece, and 600 BC in Rome. However, other societies had other methods: in ancient Israel, sepulchres (tombs or vaults) were used for burial; cremation was shunned. The body was exposed to the air of the tomb and simply decomposed. The early Christian church also rejected cremation, partly because of its association with Pagan societies of Greece and Rome. Christians buried their dead in graves or in catacombs (underground vaults).
In ancient Egypt, bodies were embalmed.
In ancient China, they were buried.
When Christianity became the official religion of the Roman Empire, and the followers of other religions were exiled or exterminated, burial became the only method of disposing of bodies throughout Europe. An Italian, Professor Brunetti, developed the first modern cremation chamber in the 1870's. This triggered a movement towards cremation in Europe and North America, which has continued to the present day. In 1886, the Roman Catholic Church officially banned cremations. Church members as recently as World War II were excommunicated for arranging them. The Eastern Orthodox ecumenical patriarch of Constantinople stated in 1961 that "There is no formal Orthodox rule against cremation, but there is a heavy weight of custom and sentiment in favour of Christian burial"
There are currently about 1,100 crematories and 470,915 cremations per year in North America.
The Hebrew Scriptures (Old Testament) has a few references to the disposal by burning in fire. Some verses describe executions by Philistines or Babylonians. Burning of bodies and objects in ancient Israel were mostly reserved for idols, criminals or enemies: Genesis 38:24: Judah initially ordered his pregnant daughter-in-law to be burned to death because she was guilty of prostitution. This action would have caused the death of the woman and her twin foetuses.
Exodus 32:20: Moses destroyed the golden calf by burning it.
Leviticus 20:14: If a man marries both a woman and her mother, then all three "must be burnt in the fire" (NIV). The passage is ambiguous: it is not known whether they would be burnt alive, or would be stoned to death first, and their bodies burned.
Leviticus 21:9: If the daughter of a priest becomes a prostitute, then she "must be burnt in the fire." (NIV)
Numbers 16:35: God exterminated Korah and 250 Israelite men with fire because they opposed Moses.
Deuteronomy 7:25: God commanded that the idols of Pagan Gods be destroyed with fire.
Joshua 7:15-25: After Joshua and his army exterminated the men, women and innocent children of Jericho, a few soldiers disobeyed God's command and looted the city. As punishment for the theft, and to pay for Israel's disgrace, God ordered the thieves to be burnt. They were stoned to death; their bodies were burnt and buried in what was called the Valley of Achor.
Judges 15:6: The Philistines burnt Samson's wife and father-in-law to death.
1 Samuel 31:11-13: Earlier in the chapter, Saul had been wounded and asked for assisted suicide from his armour-bearer. The latter refused, so Saul committed suicide himself. The Philistines impaled Saul's body and those of his sons and left them on public display. The people of Jabesh Gilead retrieved the bodies, burnt them and later buried the remaining bones in Gilead.
There have been a number of theories raised to account for this unusual treatment to a hero: burning might have a local custom in Gilead. The people of Gilead may have been worried that the Philistines might dig up the bodies and further desecrate them.
Burning might have been necessary because their bodies may have partly decomposed. The Hebrew word translated as "burnt" might actually mean "anointed"; thus, the bodies might not have been burned after all.
The burial of many important Biblical figures is described in the Bible:
Genesis 25:8-10: Abraham
Genesis 23:1-4: Sarah
Genesis 35:19-20: Rachel
Genesis 35:29: Isaac,
Genesis 49:33 and 50:1-13: Jacob
Genesis 50:26: Joseph (The Israelites went to great effort to bury his body in the Promised Land; they retained it for over 300 years in Egypt and after the Exodus during 40 years of wanderings before burying it.)
Deuteronomy 34:6: Moses (God selected a burial site at a secret location in Moab for Moses.)
Joshua 24:29-30: Joshua
Joshua 24:33: Eleazar
1 Samuel 25:1: Samuel
1 Kings 2:10: David
Matthew 14:10-12: John the Baptist
Acts 5:5-10: Ananias and Sapphira
Acts 8:2: Stephen
To be not given a proper burial was considered to be a great tragedy and dishonour. 1 Kings 13:22: A prophet disobeyed God by eating a meal in a forbidden location. God laid a curse on him: that his body would not be buried in the tomb of his fathers. Shortly after, the prophet was attacked by a lion and his remains left on a road.
Jeremiah 16:6: God laid a horrible curse on the Israelites: that many would die of diseases, will not be mourned and would be "like refuse lying on the ground" (NIV). Their bodies will be consumed by animals and birds.
Jeremiah 22:19: God laid a similar curse on Jehoiakim because of his pride and disobedience. Jeremiah said that he would be given the burial of a donkey: to be dragged away and thrown outside the city gates.
Crucifixion: Of the countless number of tombs in Palestine from the era of Roman occupation which have been excavated, only one skeleton has been found which bears the marks of a crucifixion. That is because after a Roman execution, the lifeless body would be typically discarded in an open pit where it would be devoured by wild dogs. To be forbidden a traditional burial added greatly to the horror of this method of execution.
Some factors which favour cremation:
Some factors which favour burial:
God selected burial at Moses' death (Deuteronomy 34:6).
Most of the references to burning of a body in the Bible are instances of:
St Paul appears to favour burial. In 1 Corinthians 15:35-44, he discusses how God will raise the decomposed body of a believer. The symbolism used is that of planting a seed and having new life rise from the decaying seed.
The Christian church has advocated burial since its inception. They reserved burning for witches and other heretics. They exterminated hundreds of thousands of them, mainly during the 15th to 18th centuries.
Cremation can be an aid to murderers. Once a body has been cremated, it cannot be exhumed and analysed for poisons.
Various Christian groups have taken a variety of positions on cremation:
These beliefs are reinforced by recent memories of the millions of Jews who were cremated in the death camps of Nazi Germany. However, some rabbis in the Jewish Reform movement support cremation if it is the wish of the deceased.
As North American society becomes progressively more secular, it is expected that cremation will gain in favour, and become the normal method of disposing of bodies. A second factor is ecological sensitivity: some people do not want their remains to utilise badly needed land.
The number of cremations in North America has increased dramatically in recent years: from 5% in 1962 to 20% in 1992. 3 As of 1996, about 21% of Americans and 36% of Canadians are cremated at death. Percentages (2) vary from 75% in BC, to 61% in HI, 50% in WA,... 7% in LA, 4% in GA, 3% in MS and 1% in Newfoundland. 4 The high number in British Columbia is partly caused by the large transient population in the province, and the presence of many Hindus and Sikhs who are almost always cremated. Cremation is expected to be the preferred method of disposing of bodies in Canada about 2015.